Category Archives: photos

We’ve had a dedicated photography area at the Makerspace since moving to our new building in January. However, the lighting was powerful and direct, which resulted in some pretty exciting shadows. Today, I set up four 400 watt equivalent, 105 watt (somewhat) compact florescent lights on stands that each have shoot through umbrella diffusers. Check them out in room just off the craft lab.

Now we can take photos that aren’t a nightmere of shadows and hot spots! Like this teaser photo of FIDO, shown below. Stay tuned for more info on him!

A few years ago I built a panoramic camera head (mostly out of scrap wood) and while I’ve wanted to build a new one, this one (mostly) works, so I just keep using it. It also helps that Hugin keeps getting better and better at stitching panoramas together.

I was lucky enough to be at the space on a Saturday morning before it got too busy and shot a few panos. (You can see larger versions on Flickr by clicking on each photo.)Enjoy!

Here’s the craft area… something we didn’t have at the old Chase location.

The Wood Shop is constantly improving… this photo is already out of date!

The Metal/Machine Shop has some heavy duty equipment. And lots of room!

Here’s one end of the storage room…

And here’s another end of the storage room.

It’ll be great to look back at these photos and see how things have changed over time. It shouldn’t take long though, as things are in a constant state of development. (Oh, there’s more rooms, but I ran out of time! More to come… Stay Tuned!)

During a recent trip to Baltimore I got to visit Baltimore Hackerspace, take a quick tour, and talk to two of their members.

Our story actually starts back in 2011, when I was passing through Baltimore and tried to connect with Baltimore Node (another hackerspace in Baltimore) and when I mentioned on their mailing list I’d be passing through town, I got an invite to stop by Baltimore Hackerspace, which at the time was called “Harford Hackerspace” and was located in one of the member’s garage. Well, I never made it to either space last year, so I thought I’d try again this year… sadly, Baltimore Node does not currently have a space due to some issues with Load of Fun, the building they are located in. (Side note: I snapped a photo of Load of Fun back in 2009, before I was even a Milwaukee Makerspace member.)

Confused yet? Good! Anyway, Mike from Baltimore Hackerspace was kind enough to meet me there on a Wednesday afternoon for a tour. We talked about Power Wheels, Make Magazine, The Red Bull Challenge, how Baltimore Hackerspace operates, how Milwaukee Makerspace operates, and general making and hacking activities.

I snapped a few photos as well… enjoy!

Baltimore Hackerspace was not easy to find! It’s in an industrial unit (which looks a little like a storage unit) with no sign on the door. I think some signage is in their future, as it’ll really help new visitors find the place.

Here’s their Power Wheels car. It looks unlike any other Power Wheels car I’ve seen. Like most Power Wheels cars, it occasionally starts on fire. :)

They had a robot game thingy, which was a little like Operation, but you had to guide a wand over the wire and not touch it, or the robot freaked out.

OK, this thing was impressive, and confusing. When I first saw this robot I assumed it was some commercially available unit, but it turned it was build using mostly scrap! Mark (the guy working on it) finds interesting pieces from children’s toys, household appliances, etc. and puts it all together. And, that weird thing to the right is indeed a walker, modified to assist the robot in walking, at least until it can walk on its own, without the help of a balancing mechanism. Great project!

There was also art to be found… I don’t know if this was done by a member, but it definitely added color to the space and let you know where you were. ;)

Some Space Invaders were descending down the wall… I hope they fill the whole wall with them, it would definitely look cool.

They had a small office for meetings, with a big table and chairs for hacking and what-not. The office also had this whiteboard, which may contain the secrets of the universe… or something.

What’s a hackerspace without a 3D printer? Here’s their MakerBot Thing-O-Matic ready to melt some plastic.

Looks like they’ve also got some music fans (and maybe video nerds?) as members. I love the color bars!

After weeks of revisions and sitting idle, the “Podium” project was completed last night. Constructed from a tri-fold photo booth enclosure and a rolling base, the Podium holds a binder full of Guest Release Forms to introduce visitors to our space while also performing a very practical and necessary legal responsibility.

In addition to the variety of projects that were being worked on last night, Shane and Brant rewired Chris H.’s “American Horseshoes” game cabinet and reconnected the speaker. After a few rounds, we understand why it had been disconnected. It’s definitely a bar game. Regardless, it will make a great addition to the Workshop.

American Science & Surplus is selling residential style electric watt hour meters. Awhile back I picked up this analog one from them for $14, but they also have digital ones for less at their tent sale going on this weekend. I finally found some time to play with it and I managed to get it working. I’ll probably turn it into a lamp or something!

So last night Milwaukee Makerspace was honored with the opportunity to participate in a Make: Live Makerspace Road show! It was a great experience being able to see the other spaces as well as participate. The show can be enjoyed below

However, seeing just what was in front of the camera doesn’t tell the whole story! Here are some exclusive behind the scenes photos of all the action you didn’t see! You aren’t going to find this stuff anywhere else!

Matt, Sean, & Jason figure out what they are going to do when the camera comes by!

Practice makes perfect!

Kevin warms up the Power Wheels Racer for Jason. He breaks the laws of physics and time in the process. That’s normal for Kevin.

Jason waits for his big moment, while refreshing himself with a local product.

The Makers sit quietly and enjoy the rest of the program in reverent scilence.

There you have it! Contnet you just can’t find anywhere else! Hope you enjoyed it!